Device for cutting flower stems and the like



March 26, 1968 F. w. EARNEST Ill, ETAL 3,374,541

DEVICE FOR CUTTING FLOWER STEMS AND THE LIKE Filed Jan. 27, 1967 2Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

FRHN K W.EHRHE5T,111

4rmRA/Er5 HLBERT\H- TORONGO, 0R,

March 26, 1968 F. w. EARNEST m, ETAL 3,374,541

DEVICE FOR CUTTING FLOWER STEMS AND THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan.27, 1967 /////////////IIl"///////I1 United States Patent thee 3,374,541Patented Mar. 26, 1968 3,374,541 DEVICE FOR CUTTING FLOWER STEMS AND THELIKE Frank W. Earnest III, Williamsport, and Albert H. Torongo, 32".,Yardley, Pa., assignors to Frank W. Earnest, Jr., doing business asFrank Earnest Company, Williamsport, Pa.

Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 541,157, Apr. 8, 1966. Thisapplication Jan. 27, 1967, Ser. No. 612,152

Claims. (Cl. -432) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The device embodying thepresent invention is a gardening tool characterized by the provision ofa pair of pivotally connected members which are respectively providedwith shearing elements, the pivoted members being designed to berespectively engaged and held by the thumb and a finger of the hand of auser so that upon conjoint movement of the thumb and finger the membersare moved relatively to one another in a scissors-like manner to severand trim flower stems and effect light pruning of shrubbery and thelike.

This application is a continuation-in-part of our previously filedpending application Ser. No. 541,157, filed Apr. 8, 1966.

This invention relates generally to a gardening tool and moreparticularly to an improved construction of a tool which is adapted tobe fitted upon and operated by the hand of the user to quickly andeasily sever and trim flower stems, as well as effect light pruning ofshrubbery and the like.

Among the principal objects of the present invention is to provide ashearing device which when fitted on the hand of the user may be easilyand etficiently operated by conjoint movement of the thumb and anadjacent filger of the hand to cut the stems of flowers and performother light pruning and trimming of plants and shrubs.

Other important objects are to provide a device which is of simple andinexpensive design and construction, which is efiicient and safe in useand which, while easily and readily adapted to be slipped on and off ofthe hand of the user, may nevertheless be firmly held in operativeposition upon the hand for positive and effective shearing action.

Still other objects and advantages of the invention will appear morefully hereinafter, it being understood that the present inventionconsists substantially in the combination, construction, location andrelative arrangement of parts, as described in detail in the followingspecificat'on, as shown in the accompanying drawings and as finallypointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the tool ofthe present invention:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view showing the flower stem cutterconstructed in accordance with the principles of the present inventionoperatively mounted upon the thumb and forefinger of the users hand;

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view thereof;

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view showing the tool of the presentinvention;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical transverse sectional view thereof as taken alongthe line -44 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view as taken along theline 55 of FIGURE 4, showing the tool in its partially opened condition;

FIGURE 6 is a partial vertical longitudinal sectional view as takenalong the line 6-6 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 7 is a view similar to FIGURE 5 but on a reduced scale andshowing the tool in its closed condition; and

FIGURE 8 is a detail sectional view as taken along the line 88 of FIGURE7.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, it will be observed thedevice of the present invention generally comprises a pair offinger-engaging members 10 and 11 which are pivotally secured together,as will appear more fully hereinafter, by a pivot pin 12 to permit thesame to be moved relatively to one another in a scissors-like manner.The members 10 and 11, which may be formed of any suitable material butare preferably molded of a suitable high impact strength and scratchresistant plastic material, such as polypropylene, polycarbonate,acetal, nylon, acrylic and the like, are each of ring-like shape intransverse cross-section and of lengths sufiicient to encompass,respectively, the major portions of the thumb and any adjacent finger ofthe hand upon which the device is fitted for use. Preferably, themembers 10 and 11 are each longitudinally slitted, as at 13 and 14, soas to provide each of the same with opposed side walls which areinherently inwardly biased to snugly embrace the finger and yet besufiiciently yieldable to comfortably fit fingers of varying girth.

The pivoted members 10 and 11 are relatively disposed with theirlongitudinal axes in the longitudinally extending vertical median planeof the device, so that it may be fitted upon either the right or lefthand for scissors-like movement of the members about their pivot 12which, when the device is hand-mounted for use, is located substantiallyin the crotch between the thumb and forefinger of the hand.

The ringlike member 10, which preferably is that which is fitted uponthe index or middle finger of the hand, is provided with a relativelyflat base or platform portion 15 into the bottom of which is suitablyset a cutter blade 16 which is beveled, as at 16a, to provide it with asharpened shearing edge 17. This blade 16, which extends longitudinallyalong the length of the member 19 and is disposed in the median planethereof, is permanently locked into the plastic material of which thering member is formed by the provision in said cutter blade oflongitudinally spaced holes 18 into which the pastic material flowsduring the operation of molding the ring member to shape with the bladeset therein as an integral part of the member 10.

As most clearly appears in FIGURES 5 and 6, the rear end portions of thesteel cut-ter blade 16, which is apertured, as at 19, to receive thepivot pin 12, projects somewhat beyond the rear edge of the base orplatform portion 15 of the fingerengaging member 16 and may be of depthsuflicient to provide a shoulder 20 extending substantially at rightangles to the cutting edge of the blade immediately at the rear end ofsaid cutting edge. When such shoulder is provided there may be formedtherein a detent notch 21 for a purpose which will appear hereinafter.

The base or platform portion 15 of the finger-engaging member 10 extendsforwardly beyond the front end of the cutter blade 16 and is providedwith an arcuately shaped front end 22, as best appears in FIGURES 1, 2and 3, to provide an edge about which the first phalange of the fingermay be bent to firmly retain the cutting device in operative positionupon the hand with its pivot located in the crotch :between the thumband forefinger.

The ring-like member 11, which receives the thumb, is also provided witha relatively flattened base or platform portion 23 from the uppersurface of which upwardly projects a longitudinally groovedblade-receiving portion 24 formed as an integral part of the member 11.This portion 24, which is of a length substantially coextensive withthat of the cutting edge 17 of the blade 16, is provided with alongitudinal groove 25 adapted to receive the blade cutting edge. Thisgroove 25 is defined along one side thereof by an upstanding wall part26 the inner surface 27 of which is coplanar with the flat (not beveled)side of the cutter blade and constitutes the shear surface with whichthe cutting edge of the blade 16 coacts to shear the flower stem or thelike which is being cut.

The opposite side of the blade-receiving groove 25 is defined by anupstanding wall part 28 which is of a vertical depth substantially lessthan that of the shear Wall 7 part 25. The upper surface of thisrelatively shallow wall part 28 is provided with relatively broadsaw-toothlike teeth 29 or other serrations adapted to engage the flowerstem under pressure of the cutter blade to prevent its shiftingoutwardly from the nip of the shear during the cutting operation. Theinner edges of these serrations or teeth 29 are beveled or chambered, asat 29a, to provide cutter blade 16 is received between the ears 3131 ofthe thumb-receiving member 11 and is pivotally secured there to by thepivot pin, the pivotal arrangement being such that when the members 10and 11 are brought together into closed position, as shown in FIGURE 7,the full length of the cutting edge 17 of the cutter blade reaches thebottom of the groove 25 formed in the member 11 and so insures effectivecutting completely through the flower stem or the like which issupported for cutting well above the bottom of said groove.

The depth of the blade-receiving groove 25 is such that when the bladeis swun into its fully closed position, as shown for example in FIGURES7 and 8, its beveled surface 16a engages the inclined complementallybeveled surfaces 29a of the serrations or teeth 16 to thereby limitdownward movement of the blade to a point at which its cutting edge 27is just short of actual contact with the bottom of the groove 25 formedin the top of the plastic thumb receiving member 11. This effectivelyeliminates such penetration of the blade into the plastic member andcutting of the latter as might eventually weaken the member, at the sametime that it prevents premature dulling of the cutting edge of theblade.

It will be noted that the slotted portion 30 of the member 11 terminatesat a point spaced forwardly of the notched shoulder 20 of the blade 16when the latter is in its closed position thereby permitting the bladedmember 10 to freely swing into its closed position as shown in FIGURE 7without interference. The. grooved base or platform portion 23 of thethumb-receiving member is integrally provided at its rear end with arearwardly projecting fin 32 which lies between the opposite side wallsof the groove 30 and is free to flex relatively to the base portion 23of the member 11. The projecting length of this flexible element 32 issuch that when the blade-fitted part of the cutter device is swung intoits closed position, the free rear edge of the element 32 snaps into thenotch 21 of the pivoted portion of the blade and serves as a detent tohold the device in its closed position. This detenting is, however, ofsuch slight holding effort as not i the blade between the dot and dashlines 33-33 shown in each of FIGURES 6 and 7, thereby reducing the depthof the cutter blade in the region of its pivot and so eliminating theprovision of the shoulder 20. It has been found that by extending thecutting edge 27 of the blade to its full length as just described, theblade may be more readily and effectively sharpened and resharpened. 7

It will be understood, of course, that the present invention issusceptible of various'changes and modiflcations which may :be made fromtime to time without departing from the real spirit'or generalprinciples of 'the V invention, and it is accordingly intended to claimthe same broadly, as well as specifically, as indicated by the appendedclaims.

What is claimed as new and useful is:

1. A gardening device for cutting flower stems and the like, comprising,in combination, a pair of members formed of plastic material adaptedrespectively to be engaged by the thumb and an adjacent finger of thehand of the user of the device, said members being respectively providedwith integral elongated rigid base portions of lengths respectivelyadapted to overlie a major portion of the thumb and the two innerphalanges of the finger, a shear blade fixed to and carried by the baseportion of one of said members, said shear blade having on one sidethereof a flat surface and On its other side a beveled surface to form acutting edge extending lengthwise of the sheer blade, the second of saidmembers having formed in its base portion a longitudinally extendinggroove for receiving the cutting edge of said blade, said groove beingdefined by a pair of upwardly projecting ribs integrally formed on saidsecond member, one of said ribs being in shearing relation to thecutting edge of said shear blade and the other of said ribs being ofsubstantially less vertical depth than said shear rib and having aserrated upper surface adapted to grip the stern being cut and preventoutward shifting thereof from the nip of the shear elements during theoperation of cutting the flower stem or the like, the inner edge of saidserrated surface being beveled to an angle complemental to that of thebeveled surface of the shear blade, the relative dimensions of saidshear blade and groove being such that said complementally beveledsurfaces coact to limit penetration of the shear blade cutting edge intothe groove to a point just short of the bottom of said groove, and meanspivotally connecting said members to permit relative movement thereoffor shearing action between said shear blade and said shear rib, saidpivot means, being located, when the device is fitted upon the hand foruse, approximately in the region of the crotch between the thumb andindex finger of the hand.

2. A gardening device for cutting flower stems and the like, comprising,in combination, a pair of members formed of plastic material adaptedrespectively to be engaged by the thumb and an adjacent finger of thehand of the user of the device,'said members being respectively providedwith integral elongated rigid base portions of lengths respectivelyadapted to overlie a major portion I of the thumb and the two innerphalanges of the finger, a shear blade fixed to and carried'by the baseportion of a first one of said members, said shear blade having on oneside thereof a flat surface and on its other side a beveled surface toform a cutting edge extending lengthwise of the shear blade, the rearend portion of said shear blade being provided with a shoulderextendingsubstan tially at right angles to the cutting edge of theblade, and having a detent notch formed therein with its mouth pre-Senting forwardly of the device, the base portion of the second of saidmembers being provided with. a longitudinally extending groove forreceiving the cutting edge of said blade and with a rearwardlyprojecting flexible detent which seats in said notch to hold the devicein its closed condition, said second member having integrally formed ofsaid groove in shearing relation to the cutting edge of said shear bladeand means pivotally connecting said members to permit relative movementthereof and shearing action between said shear blade and said side wallof the groove, said pivot means, being located, when the device isfitted upon the hand for use, approximately in the region of the crotchbetween the thumb and index finger of the hand.

3. A gardening device as defined in claim 1 wherein said thumb andfinger-receiving members are each of generally circular form intransverse cross-section and wherein said cutter blade is keyed into itsassociated plastic member.

4. A gardening device as defined in claim 1 wherein said grooved secondmember is provided at its rear end with a pair of laterally spaced earswhich embrace the rear portion of said shear blade and wherein saidpivot means includes a pivot pin extending transversely through saidears and the portion of the shear blade embraced therebetween.

288,096 11/1883 Morgan 30-232 660,709 10/1900 McGhee 30-232 1,802,9054/1931 Bryant 30-254 2,627,656 2/1953 Richartz 30254 FOREIGN PATENTS439,019 12/1926 Germany.

OTBELL M. SIMPSON, Primary Examiner.

WILLIAM FELDMAN, Examiner.

I. C. PETERS, Assistant Examiner.

